Sunday, September 8, 2013

Smiling

Juno, sorting out
the meaning of life
at eight weeks old.

We
have a new puppy in the house. Could life be any better?

Yes,
it can and it will. I took her out in the dark this morning about five, only to be startled
by a duck quack by the driveway, then it quacked near the barn, and then over
near the woods…it was flying unseen in the dark, probably trading between nearby ponds.

Fall
is in the air. Last week we traveled up to Camp Grouse, where the former
vibrant green hillsides had started to show signs of rust. Out walking, wild
apples hung red from their trees and we found grouse, even busting an
enormous covey just before we had to head south again. Twice we searched the sky for
geese we could hear but barely see. I read in the news this morning they had a
frost up there last night, which I’m sure softened the fruit hanging from trees.
I can’t wait to return.

A hidden pond behind a clear cut in grouse country

Back
here at home, the air is drier and the leaves sound different when ruffled by
the wind. In the woods the low-growing huckleberry and blueberry have shed
their leaves, and the ferns have shriveled to brown. The deep green of the oaks
is tarnished and the clouds move faster across the sky. Ducks have
appeared on the ponds, swimming in orderly flotillas, where a few weeks ago
they all remained hidden.

My two German wirehairs
are enjoying the cool weather,

Both
of the older dogs are a bit more intense in the woods, they sense what is coming. This morning, on a walk right after breakfast, they flushed a wild peahen in a field out back, and boy did that get them excited. Back in the yard, the pup watches the clusters of birds and dashes about after them, often tumbling over her own fat feet.

Soon I'll be able to count the days until bird season opens on my fingers and toes. Life just keeps getting better,

Search This Blog

Follow by Email

My new novel

An exciting thriller set in the northern forests, where some culprit is burning trucks, killing people, and destroying a way of life. And if that wasn't enough, a clash between animal rights activists and the rural hunting culture results in a confrontation that might change the backwoods forever.

Bird country

It's that time of the year...broods are breaking up.

Woodcock

Hiding among the leaves

Peter Corbin with a hard earned grouse...

Discussing a point.

Part of the team.

Jim Kline and I, with Juno and Georgia.

A Passion for Grouse

Jerry Allen had the privilege to write the New England chapter in A Passion for Grouse.